Music synchronization arrangement

ABSTRACT

The invention generally pertains to a hand-held computing device. More particularly, the invention pertains to a computing device that is capable of controlling the speed of the music so as to affect the mood and behavior of the user during an activity such as exercise. By way of example, the speed of the music can be controlled to match the pace of the activity (synching the speed of the music to the activity of the user) or alternatively it can be controlled to drive the pace of the activity (increasing or decreasing the speed of the music to encourage a greater or lower pace). One aspect of the invention relates to adjusting the tempo (or some other attribute) of the music being outputted from the computing device. By way of example, a songs tempo may be increased or decreased before or during playing. Another aspect of the invention relates to selecting music for outputting based on tempo (or some other attribute). For example, the computing device may only play songs having a particular tempo. Yet another aspect of the invention relates to both selecting music based on tempo and adjusting the tempo of the music.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Divisional of and claims the benefit of priorityunder 35 USC §120 to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/721,408, filedon Mar. 10, 2010 which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.No. 12/367,361 filed Feb. 6, 2009, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,705,230 issuedApr. 27, 2010 which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.No. 10/997,479 filed Nov. 24, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,521,623 issuedApr. 21, 2009, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference hereinin their entireties.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to portable media devices and, moreparticularly, to improved features for managing and outputting mediaitems.

2. Description of the Related Art

There exist today many styles of sound machines such as home stereos,car stereos, boom boxes, CD players, and hand-held music players (e.g.,MP3) for outputting music. Hand-held music players in particular havebecome increasingly popular as they allow a user to listen to music onthe go. That is, because of their size, they can easily be transportedwherever the user travels. In some cases, the devices are attached tothe user, as for example, using a belt or clip, thereby making them eveneasier to transport. In fact, because of their ease of transport, theyare commonly used when exercising. The user can wear the music playerthereby leaving their hands free to exercise. The iPod® manufactured byApple Computer of Cupertino, Calif. is one example of a hand-held MP3player.

In most cases, the music stored in music player is downloaded from ahost device such as a personal computer. The personal computer caninclude music management software that allows a user to sort, store andcatalog their music. More particularly, the music management softwaregives the user the ability to organize their music into playlists, playmusic, purchase music over the Internet (World Wide Web), run avisualizer to display the music in a visual form, encode or transcodemusic into different audio formats such as MP3, AIFF, WAV, AAC, and ALE,and transfer music between the personal computer and the music players.iTunes® manufactured by Apple Computer of Cupertino, Calif. is oneexample of music management software.

A personal computer may also include other software programs associatedwith music. By way of example, the personal computer may utilizerecording software that allows a user to perform, record and createmusic. These types of programs typically include features such asinstruments, pre-recorded loops, amps, effects and editing tools.GarageBand® manufactured by Apple Computer of Cupertino, Calif., is oneexample of a music recording program.

The personal computer may also utilize mixing software that allows auser to perform DJ mixing, live remixing, and mix recording using musicin various formats such as MP3. This type of software typically performsmany functions including mixing, equalizing, cross fading, looping,tempo determination, pitch and tempo adjustment, etc. In order tosynchronize two songs during mixing, mixing programs may be configuredto analyze the music files and create beat marks for each song (annotateall the beats of the songs so that they can be matched efficientlyduring mixing). Furthermore, in order to adjust the tempo of a songwithout affecting pitch, mixing programs may utilize a technique calledphase vocoding, which is one of the more powerful methods ofmanipulating sounds in the frequency domain. Only recently have personalcomputers had sufficient processing to make real-time phase vocoding aviable proposition. In the past, algorithms for phase vocoding were ofsuch complexity and personal computers were of limited processing powersuch that it would often require many hours of processing to acquireeach second of audio output. Traktor DJ Studio 2.0 manufactured byNative Instruments of Germany is one example of a mixing program.

Although music player systems utilizing a music player and personalcomputer work well, there is a continuing need for improved features formanaging and outputting music.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates, in one embodiment, to a music method performed ona hand-held computing device. The method generally includes designatingan attribute of a song. The method also includes controlling the musicoutput of the computing device based on the designated attribute of thesong. The attribute may, for example, correspond to the tempo of thesong.

The invention relates, in another embodiment, to a method performed on ahand-held computing device. The method includes designating a tempo. Themethod also includes adjusting the tempo of one or more audio tracksbeing outputted to match the designated tempo.

The invention relates, in another embodiment, to a method performed on ahand-held computing device. The method includes storing a plurality ofaudio tracks. Each audio track having a tempo. The method also includesdesignating a tempo. The method further includes selecting audio tracksfrom storage with a tempo similar to the designated tempo.

The invention relates, in another embodiment, to a computer readablemedium contained on a hand-held music player and including at leastcomputer code for managing music. The medium includes obtaining thetempo of an event. The medium also includes outputting music. The mediumfurther includes controlling the tempo of the music being outputtedbased on the tempo of the event.

The invention relates, in another embodiment, to a hand-held mediaplayer. The hand-held media player includes a housing of the mediaplayer. The hand-held media player also includes an accelerometerdisposed inside the housing of the media player and configured tomeasure the motion of the media player. The hand-held music playerfurther includes a music storage element disposed inside the housing ofthe media player and configured to contain one or more music items. Thehand-held media player additionally includes a processor disposed insidethe housing of the media player, and operatively coupled to theaccelerometer and the music storage element. The processor is configuredto control the output of the music items based on the motion of themedia player.

The invention relates, in another embodiment, to a method performed on ahand-held media player. The method includes sensing the pace of bodymotion. The method also includes playing one or more audio tracks. Themethod further includes adjusting the tempo of each audio track inaccordance with changes in body motion.

The invention relates, in another embodiment, to a method performed on ahand-held music player. The method includes designating a tempo profile.The method also includes outputting one or more audio tracks. The methodfurther includes adjusting the tempo of the audio tracks based on thetempo profile.

The invention relates, in another embodiment, to a method oftransferring data between a host device and a portable media device. Theportable media device is capable of storing and playing media items. Themethod includes, at the host device, designating at least one audio filefor downloading to the portable media device. The method also includes,at the host device, generating a tempo tag for each designated audiofile. Each tempo tag indicates the tempo of the audio file. The methodfurther includes, at the host device, sending the audio file includingthe tempo tag to the portable media device.

The invention relates, in another embodiment, to a method oftransferring data between a host device and a portable media device. Theportable media device is capable of storing and playing media items. Themethod includes, at the host device, designating at least one song fordownloading to the portable media device. The method also includes, atthe host device, producing a music collection for each designated song.Each music collection contains the original version of the designatedsong and new versions of the designated song. Each new version has adifferent tempo. The method further includes, at the host device,sending the music collection to the portable media device.

The invention relates, in another embodiment, to an operational methodfor a hand-held music player. The method includes storing music data.The music data includes a plurality of music collections. Each musiccollection contains an original song and a plurality of differentlyformatted songs based on the original song. The original and differentlyformatted songs have different tempos. The music collection is generatedseparately on a device other than the portable media device. The methodalso includes designating a desired tempo. The method further includesretrieving at least one song from storage having a tempo that closelymatches the desired tempo. The method additionally includes outputtingone or more of the retrieved songs.

The invention relates, in another embodiment, to a portable media devicecapable of playing music. The portable media device includes a storagedevice containing downloaded music data. The music data includes aplurality of music collections. Each music collection includes anoriginal song and plurality of different versions of the original song.Each song in the music collection has an attribute with a differentvalue. The portable media device also includes a processor configured tocontrol the supply of songs to a speaker.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be readily understood by the following detaileddescription in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein likereference numerals designate like structural elements, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of a music player, in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A is an illustration of an audio file signal, in accordance withone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2B is an illustration of a tag with beats annotated, in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a music method performed on a music player, in accordance withone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a music method performed on a music player, in accordance withone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a music method performed on a music player, in accordance withone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a music method performed on a music player, in accordance withone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a music player system, in accordance withanother embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a media player system, in accordance withone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an operational method, in accordance with one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIGS. 10A-10I show various screen shots of a computing device, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 11A-11E show various work out programs, in accordance with oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is an operational method performed on a portable media device,in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is an operational method performed on a portable media device,in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram of a media management system, in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram of a media player, in accordance with oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is method of transferring data between a host device and aportable media device, in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 17 is method of transferring data between a host device and aportable media device, in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 18 is perspective view of a hand-held computing device, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 19 shows a user jogging with a music player attached to the arm, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 20 shows a music player moving up and down in accordance with auser's steps, in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 21 shows an exemplary signal produced by an accelerometer, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a side elevation view of a hand-held computing device, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a side elevation view of a hand-held computing device, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

It is well documented that music can affect the mood and behavior ofpeople. For example, different compositions of music may be used forrelaxing, romancing, dancing, exercising, etc. During exercise inparticular, music can be used to motivate, speed and drive the intensityof the workout. For example, it is generally believed that if the musicis invigorating and inspiring people will be more motivated to work out.Because of this, most gyms play music with an upbeat tempo to keeppeople motivated during their work out. Furthermore, some studies haveshown that joggers who exercised with music had greater endurance,worked out longer and felt better about the workout than those whoworked out without music.

One attribute of music that is believed to be tied strongly to mood andbehavior is tempo. Tempo, which is often measured in beats per minute(bpm), is the speed at which an element or composition is played. Thetempo of music typically ranges between 50 and 200 beats per minute.Although tempo sets the basic pace of music, it should be noted that therhythm of the music can also have an impact on the perceived pace (so ittoo can affect a person's mood and behavior).

With regards to exercising, it is generally believe that the speed ofthe music influences the pace of a person's workouts since the bodyautomatically tries to keep in synch with the music. Because of this,slower tempos, which tend to produce a more relaxed state, are typicallyused when stretching, warming up or cooling down, while faster tempos,which tend to produce a more excited state, are typically used whenstrength training or performing cardio work outs. In fact, some studieshave shown that sedative music (low tempo) is great for stretching butbad for strength training, and that stimulating music (high tempo) isgood for strength training but bad for stretching.

The invention generally pertains to a hand-held music player. The termhand-held music player is primarily directed at music storage playerssuch as MP3 music players, although it may also be directed at anyhand-held personal computing device capable of outputting music as, forexample, a game player, a video player, a cell phone, a personal digitalassistant (PDA), and/or the like. More particularly, the inventionpertains to a music player that is capable of controlling the speed ofthe music so as to affect the mood and behavior of the user during anactivity such as exercise. By way of example, the speed of the music canbe controlled to match the pace of the activity (synching the speed ofthe music to the activity of the user) or alternatively it can becontrolled to drive the pace of the activity (increasing or decreasingthe speed of the music to encourage a faster or slower pace).

One aspect of the invention relates to adjusting the tempo (or someother attribute) of music being outputted from a music player. By way ofexample, a song's tempo may be increased or decreased before or duringplaying. This is typically accomplished in real time (on the fly) in themusic player. Another aspect of the invention relates to selecting musicfor outputting based on tempo (or some other attribute). For example,the music player may play songs having a particular tempo. Yet anotheraspect of the invention relates to both selecting music based on tempoand adjusting the tempo of the music.

These and other embodiments of the invention are discussed below withreference to FIGS. 1-23. However, those skilled in the art will readilyappreciate that the detailed description given herein with respect tothese figures is for explanatory purposes as the invention extendsbeyond these limited embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of a music player 10, in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention. The music player 10includes a music manager 12 and a music store 14, both of which can beembodied as software or hardware or a combination of software andhardware. The music manager 12 controls the audio output of music files16 stored in the music store 14. During operation, for example, themusic manager 12 selects an audio track 18 from the music files 16 andoutputs the audio track 18 in the form of an audio track.

In accordance with one embodiment, the music manager 12 is configured toselect audio tracks 18 with particular characteristics and/or adjustcharacteristics of the audio tracks 18 to meet a particular need. In sodoing, the music can be more closely matched to a user's mood andcircumstances, and in some cases drive the mood and circumstances of theuser. For example, the music manager 12 can select an audio track oradjust the characteristics of the audio track to match the behavior ofthe user, and/or it can select an audio track or adjust thecharacteristics of the audio track to encourage or drive the behavior ofthe user.

In one implementation, the music manager 12 is configured to adjust thetempo of an audio track or an audio track (as it is being outputted).This may be accomplished via a user selection or some external event. Inthe case of user selection, the user may set a desired tempo, andthereafter the media manager 12 may adjust the tempo of the audio tracksto match the desired tempo. In the case of events, the media manager maymonitor an event and adjust the tempo of the audio track 18 based on thetempo of the event. In either case, the tempo may be adjustedincrementally or continuously (real time). When incrementally, the mediamanager 12 may sample the user selection or event at various times, andtherefore only adjust the tempo at various times. When continuously, themedia manager 12 continuously samples the user selection or event whilethe audio track 18 is being output, and simultaneously adjusts the tempoof the audio output with the tempo of the user selection or event as itchanges.

The user selection may be performed in a variety of ways. In oneexample, the user selection is made through a GUI and a button or wheelthat operates a slider bar on the GUI. The desired tempo changes as theslider bar is moved to various positions. The user can therefore selecta desired tempo by simply moving the slider bar to a position associatedwith the desired tempo. Once a tempo is set, the music manager 12 canadjust the tempo of the audio track 18 accordingly. For example, if theuser selects 120 beats per minute, and the audio track has a tempo of140 beats per minute, then the music manager 12 can decrease the tempoof the audio track 18 from 140 bpm to 120 bpm thereby matching the tempoof the audio track with the selected tempo.

The events, which are typically monitored by the music manager 12, maybe widely varied. In one example, the user events are associated with abody metric such as body motion, heart rate, respiratory rate,temperature, and the like. In most cases, these types of events aremeasured via sensors that send signals to the music manager 12 that areproportional to the tempo of the user event. For example, when the userevent is body motion, and more particularly jogging, the sensors maysend a signal indicative of the number of steps per minute, which canthen be translated by the music manager 12 to beats per minute (bpm).For example, each step may represent one beat. The music manager afterdetermining the tempo (bpm) of the user event can adjust the tempo ofthe audio track accordingly. For example, if the audio track has a tempoof 120 beats per minute, and the user event has a tempo of 140 beats perminute, then the music manager 12 can increase the tempo of the audiotrack from 120 bpm to 140 bpm thereby matching the tempo of the audiotrack with the tempo of the user event. Alternatively, the sensor itselfmay translate the step/m to beat/m.

In another implementation, the media manager 12 is configured to selectaudio tracks having tempos that closely match a desired tempo. Thedesired tempo may be based on a user selection or on some user eventsuch as a body metric. For example, the user may set a desired tempo,and thereafter the media manager 12 may browse through all the musicfiles 16 stored in the music store 14 looking for audio tracks 18 withsimilar tempos. Alternatively, the media manager 12 may monitor a userevent, and thereafter the media manager 12 may browse through all themusic files 16 stored in the music store 14 looking for audio tracks 18with tempos similar to the user event. In either case, once matches aremade, the media manager 12 outputs only those audio tracks, which havetempos that closely match the desired tempo.

In some cases, the music files 16 may contain multiple versions of thesame audio track 18. Each version has a different tempo and thereforemore audio tracks 18 may be made available for outputting. By way ofexample, the music files 16 may contain the original version 18A as wellas one or more increased tempo versions 18B, and one or more decreasedtempo versions 18C. The different versions may be part of the originalmusic file, or they may be created when the music file is downloadedeither to a host device that serves the music player 10 or to the musicplayer 10 itself. Furthermore, in order to make it easier on the musicmanager 12 (save time and processing power), each audio track 18 mayinclude a tag 20 that indicates the tempo of the audio track 18. The tag20 may be part of the original music file, or it may be created when themusic file is acquired (e.g., downloaded). By providing tags 20, themusic manager 12 does not have to determine the tempo of each audiotrack 18 on its own. It simply has to select the audio tracks 16 withthe desired tempo by looking at the tags 20. The tags and formats may beassociated with metadata.

The tag may be a simple number such as 120 bpm or it may be based on thescore that has the beats annotated. FIG. 2A is an example of an audiooutput signal, and FIG. 2B is an example of a preprocessed tag with thebeats annotated for the audio output signal.

In yet another implementation, the music manager 12 is configured toboth select audio tracks 18 having tempos that closely match a desiredtempo, and to adjust the tempo of the audio track as it is beingoutputted. This is a combination of the two embodiments mentioned above.This particular embodiment may be used to reduce the processing powertypically required to adjust the tempo of the audio track 18 at themusic player 10. Because the tempo of the audio track has already beenpre-selected to closely match the desired tempo, only small adjustmentsneed to be made to more closely match the tempo of the audio track withthe desired tempo. For example, if the desired tempo is 120 bpm, themusic manager may select audio tracks having tags that indicate betweenabout 115 bpm and about 125 bpm, and thereafter the music manager mayadjust the audio track to bring it to 120 bpm.

Although the embodiments described above are primarily directed at“tempo matching” it should be noted that this is not a limitation andthat the music manager may also be configured to drive events based onthe tempo. For example, the music manager can select or adjust the tempoof music to illicit a change in a user event such as a body metric(e.g., the music manger can slow the tempo, thereby causing the user toslow their pace or the music manger can speed up the tempo, therebycausing the user to speed up their pace).

FIG. 3 is a music method 50 performed on a music player, in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention. The method generallyincludes blocks 52 and 54. In block 52, an attribute of a song isdesignated. The attribute may for example correspond to tempo, rhythm,pitch, and the like. The designation may be accomplished by a userselection, i.e., a user selects the attribute and its desired value. Theattribute is typically fixed once it is selected, i.e., it doesn'tchange until a user selects another attribute or another value. Thedesignation may also be accomplished by monitoring an event such as amedia player event, a user event, or the like. In this case, theattribute may be fixed or it may vary over time.

In block 54, the music output of the media player is controlled based onthe designated attribute of the song. The music can be controlled in avariety of ways. In some cases, the actual attribute of the song isadjusted based on the designated attribute. For example, the actualattribute may be increased or decreased to match the designatedattribute. In other cases, the songs that are selected for playing arebased on the designated attribute. For example, only those songs with anactual attribute that matches the designated attribute may be played.

FIG. 4 is a music method 60 performed on a music player, in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention. The method begins at block62 where a tempo indicator is obtained. The tempo indication may begenerated by a user selection or by monitoring some event. Once a tempoindicator is obtained, the method proceeds to block 64 where an audiotrack is obtained. For example, once an audio track is selected, themedia player begins playing the audio track so that is can betransmitted to a speaker or headset. The method also includes block 66,which can occur before or during the playing (block 64). In block 66,the tempo of the audio track is adjusted based on the tempo indicator.In some cases, the tempo of the audio track is adjusted to match thetempo indicator, and in other cases, the tempo of the audio track isadjusted to effect a change, but not necessarily to match the twotempos. That is, the tempo indicator may be used to drive the tempo upand down in conjunction with some rules. For example, the tempo of themusic may be a multiple or divisor of the user's pace (⅔×, ¾×, 2×, 3×,etc.).

FIG. 5 is a music method 70 performed on a music player, in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention. The method begins at block72 where a plurality of songs, each of which has a tempo, are stored.The songs may for example be stored in memory. Thereafter in block 74, atempo indicator is obtained. This block is similar to block 64 describedabove. Following block 74, the method proceeds to block 76 where one ormore songs are selected from storage based on the tempo indicator. Insome cases, the tempo of the song is selected to match to the tempoindicator, and in other cases, the tempo of the song is selected toeffect a change, but not necessarily to match the two tempos. Forexample, the tempo indicator may be used to drive the tempo of the nextsong up and down in conjunction with some rules. Thereafter, in block78, a least one of the selected songs is retrieved from storage andoutputted.

In FIGS. 4 and 5, the step of obtaining the tempo of a user event suchas a body metric may include generating a signal indicative of a userevent and extracting tempo information from the user event. By way ofexample, if the user event is body motion, an accelerometer may be usedto generate an acceleration signal indicative of the user'sacceleration, and a controller of some sort may be used to extract thetempo of the user's motion from the acceleration signal. Duringextraction, one or more conversion or filtering steps can be performedin order to transform the user event signal into a tempo indication.

FIG. 6 is a music method 100 performed on a music player, in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention. The method begins at block102 where a determination is made as to whether or not a playlistfeature is selected. A playlist is a plurality of songs that are groupedtogether. They may for example be grouped according to music genre, userratings, most played, recently played, etc. The playlist is typicallyselected via a user interface that includes a display and an inputdevice. If the playlist feature is not selected, the method waits.

If the playlist feature is selected, then the method proceeds to block104 where a determination is made as to whether or not a tempo selectionfeature is active. If it is not active, the method proceeds to block 106where the entire playlist is retrieved. If it is active, the methodproceeds to block 108 where a tempo indicator is obtained. This may beaccomplished via user selection, or monitoring an event and extractingtempo information from the event. If the tempo indicator is extractedfrom an event, the method may proceed to block 110 where the desiredtempo is determined from the tempo indication. For example, the tempoindicator can be compared to a set of rules to calculate the desiredtempo. In some cases the desired tempo is the same as the tempoindicator and in other cases the desired tempo is different. In thelater case for example the rules may state that the tempo indicator isto low and thus the desired tempo should be increased. This may be doneto drive the pace of the user. Following either blocks 108 or 110, themethod proceeds to block 112 where songs from the playlist having thedesired tempo are retrieved. In one embodiment, the retrieved songs arethose having a tempo not substantially different than the desired tempo.

Following blocks 106 or 112, the method proceeds to block 114 where adetermination is made as to whether or not a song is selected from theplaylist (the entire playlist if the flow passed through block 106 and amodified playlist if the flow passed through block 110). This can beaccomplished a variety of ways. For example, the user may manuallyselect one song at a time or the user may select the first song andthereafter the songs may be selected automatically one after the otherin some predetermined manner. Alternatively, the user can select ashuffle feature that randomly selects songs from the playlist. Once thesong(s) is selected, the method proceeds to block 116 where the song isretrieved. Following block 116, the method proceeds to block 118 where adetermination is made as to whether or not a tempo adjustment feature isactive. If it is not active, the method proceeds to block 120 where themusic is outputted. If the tempo adjustment feature is active, themethod proceeds to block 122 where the tempo indicator is obtained forthe retrieved song. For example, the tempo indicator for the retrievedsong can be determined by analysis of its audio file or by a tempo tag.Once the tempo indicator is obtained, the method proceeds to block 124where a determination is made as to whether or not a tempo adjustment isneeded. If not, the music is outputted in block 120. If so, the tempo ofthe music is adjusted in block 126 and thereafter the modified music isoutputted in block 120.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a music player system 130, in accordancewith another embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the musicplayer 130 includes a processor 132 configured to execute instructionsand to carry out operations associated with the music player 130. Forexample, using instructions retrieved for example from memory, theprocessor 132 may control the reception and manipulation of input andoutput data between components of the music player system 130. Theprocessor 132 can be implemented on a single-chip, multiple chips ormultiple electrical components. For example, various architectures canbe used for the processor 132, including dedicated or embeddedprocessor, single purpose processor, controller, DSP, ASIC, and soforth.

In most cases, the processor 132 together with an operating systemoperates to execute computer code and produce and use data. Theoperating system, other computer code and data may reside within amemory block 134 that is operatively coupled to the processor 132.Memory block 134 generally provides a place to store computer code anddata that are used by the music player system 130. By way of example,the memory block 134 may include Read-Only Memory (ROM), Random-AccessMemory (RAM), hard disk drive and/or the like.

The music player system 130 also includes a display device 136 that isoperatively coupled to the processor 132. The display device 136 may bea liquid crystal display (LCD) or a display implemented with electronicinks. The display device 136 is generally configured to display agraphical user interface (GUI) 138 that provides an easy to useinterface between a user of the system 130 and the operating system orapplication running thereon. Generally speaking, the GUI 138 represents,programs, files and operational options with graphical images. Thegraphical images may include windows, fields, dialog boxes, menus,icons, buttons, cursors, scroll bars, etc. The GUI 138 can additionallyor alternatively display information, such as non-interactive text andgraphics, for the user on the display device 136.

The music player system 130 also includes an input device 140 that isoperatively coupled to the processor 132. The input device 140 isconfigured to transfer data from the outside world into the music playersystem 130. The input device 140 may for example be used to performtracking and to make selections with respect to the GUI 138 on thedisplay 136. The input device 140 may also be used to issue commands inthe music player system 130. By way of example, the input device may beselected from keys, buttons, wheels, knobs, joysticks, touch pads, touchscreens, and/or the like.

The music player system 130 also includes input/output circuitry 142that is operatively coupled to the processor 132. The input/outputcircuitry 142 allows connections to one or more I/O devices 144 that canbe coupled to the music player system 130. The processor 132 generallyoperates by exchanging data between the music player system 130 and I/Odevices 144 that desire to communicate with the music player system 130.The I/O devices 144 may be connected through wired connections orthrough wireless connections. In the case of a music player, the I/Ocircuitry 142 may include an audio jack so that speakers or earphonescan be plugged into the music player system 130, and a data port so thatmusic can be transferred between the music player system 130 and a host.

The music player system 130 also includes a sensor 146 that isoperatively coupled to the processor 132 Like the input device 140, thesensor 146 is configured to transfer data from the outside world intothe music player system 130. The sensor 146 generally includescapabilities for measuring some event. The sensor may for example beused to monitor a user's body metrics such as body motion or heart rate.The sensor 146 may be located internal or external relative to thehousing of the music player. If internal, it is typically fixed withinthe housing. If external, it may be fixed to the outside of the housingor it may be located peripherally away from the housing (e.g.,peripheral device). In most cases, the sensor is positioned inside themedia player housing in order to decrease the wires and cords that oftenget in the way of a user when the user tries to exercise or move around.

It should be noted, however, there are times when this isn't practicalas for example when the event cannot be easily measured from an onboardsensor. In the case of body metric, the sensor 146 may be attached tosome mechanism for securing the sensor 146 to a user's body so that abody metric can be measured. For example, the sensor 146 may beintegrated with a band, belt, or some other article of clothing. Thesensor 146 may also be integrated into a piece of exercise equipment asfor example treadmills, stair climbers, rowing machines, punching bags,and the like. The data measured by the external sensor 146 may betransferred through a wired or wireless connections. For example, acable may be used to connect the sensor 146 to the music player system130 through the I/O circuitry or a wireless link such as Bluetooth,802.11. UWB (ultra wide band), IR, and the like may be used Like aninternal sensor, a wireless link prevents the use of cables and cords.

The sensor 146 may be widely varied. The sensor 146 may correspond topressure switches, proximity sensors, accelerometers, optical sensorsand the like. In the case of body motion, accelerometers that measureacceleration work particularly well. The accelerometer can be a single,biaxial or triaxial accelerometer depending on the needs of the system.The accelerometer can process the raw data and then send the processeddata to the processor or alternatively, the raw data can be sent to theprocessor for processing the raw data. In the first case, theaccelerometer may be embedded in a chip that has built in amplifiers andanalog to digital converters resulting in a serial digital output signalthat can be connected directly to the processor.

In accordance with one embodiment, the media player is configured tocontrol the tempo of the music being outputted from the media playerbased on the signal from the sensor. In the case of a body metric suchas body motion or heartbeat, the sensor measures a body metric andconverts the body metric into a signal indicative of the body metric.The signal is sent to the processor that analyzes the signal andextracts tempo information from the body metric signal. The processorthen refers to a set of rules that tell the processor how to affect themusic being outputted based on the tempo information. The rules may forexample be stored in the memory block. After consulting the rules, theprocessor may select a particular song for outputting based on the tempoinformation. (i.e., select a song that has a tempo that matches thetempo information, select a song that has a tempo greater than the tempoinformation, select a song that has a tempo that is lower than the tempoinformation). Additionally or alternatively, the processor may modifythe song itself based on the tempo information (i.e., increase ordecrease the tempo of the song in accordance with the tempo of the bodymetric).

In one embodiment, the rules are embodied in a tempo control program forcontrolling the tempo of the music to be outputted. The tempo programmay be accessed by a user through a tempo control menu, which may beviewed on the display device 170 as part of a GUI interface. The tempocontrol menu may include various options. In fact, the tempo controlmenu may serve as a control panel for reviewing and/or customizing thetempo control settings, i.e., the user may quickly and convenientlyreview the tempo control settings and make changes thereto. Oncechanged, the modified tempo control settings will be automatically savedand thereby employed to handle future tempo processing.

The tempo control program may include a beat synch module that isconfigured to modify the outgoing audio. For example, it is capable ofadjusting the tempo of the music being outputted from the music playersystem. Once a song has been selected, the audio associated with thesong is played so that a user can listen to the song. If the beat synchmodule is activated, it will adjust the tempo of the playing audio basedon the tempo obtained from the sensor. The adjustment may be made usingan algorithm capable of adjusting the tempo in a non-trivial manner. Thealgorithm may for example be associated with phase vocoding or SFFTprocessing. Phase vocoding is a complex signal processing technique thatincludes elements of LPC (linear predictive coding). It uses continuousand overlapping Fourier transforms of a sound for several relatedobjectives ranging from resynthesis, and timbral interpolation from onesound to another, to time stretching (altering the tempo withoutaffecting the pitch) and pitch shifting (transposition of a soundwithout altering the tempo). Traktor DJ studio manufactured by NativeInstruments of Germany is one example of a program that uses phasevocoding.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a media player system 150, in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention. The media player system150 generally includes a media device controller 152 that directs inputsand outputs between an input device 154, a display 156, a sensor 158 anda speaker 160. By way of example, the input device 154 may be a touchpad or button, the display 156 may be an LCD, the sensor 158 may be anaccelerometer, and the speaker 160 may be a headphone or speaker set.

The media device controller 152 includes several modules, which may behardware, software, or a combination of both hardware and software. Asshown, the media device controller 152 includes at least a media playermodule 162, a GUI module 164, a mode selector module 166 and a beatsynch module 168. The modules may work individually or together withother modules in order to process media information. The media playermodule 162 is primarily configured to run the media aspects of the mediaplayer system 100. That is, the media player module 162 controls theoverall activity of the media player system 150. For example, the mediaplayer module 162 may include capabilities for inputting and outputtingaudio information. The GUI module 164 controls the information presentedon the display 156. The GUI module 164 may for example present agraphical user interface in the form of text or graphics on the display156. The mode selector module 166 controls which mode the media player150 is in. For example, in the case of tempo, whether the media player150 is in a manual, automatic or training mode. The beat synch module168 helps control the tempo of the music output. That is, the beat synchmodule 168 along with the media player module select a song with thedesired tempo or it can adjust the tempo of the music before or duringthe time when it's played. By way of example, the beat synch module mayutilize phase vocoding techniques in order to adjust the tempo (or otherattribute of the music such as pitch). The media player module 162 mayinclude a set of instructions that tell the beat synch module 168 whatto do with the music based on what mode the mode selector 166 module isin. By way of example, the media player module 162 may instruct the beatsynch module to increase or decrease the tempo of the music.

During one particular operation of the system, the GUI module 164 (forexample after referring to the mode selector module 166) presents a listof tempo modes on the display 156. Using the input device 154, the userselects one of the tempo modes from the list of tempo modes. By way ofexample, the user may use a touch pad to move a selector bar though thelist of tempo modes and a button to select the desired tempo mode, i.e.,the mode around which the selector bar is positioned. The mode selectormodule 166 receives the selection signal, and changes the tempo modebased on the selection signal. Once the tempo mode has been set, theselected tempo mode will be employed to handle future music events. Thetempo modes may be widely varied. If a manual mode is selected, the beatsynch module will adjust the tempo of the music based on a user entry.If an automatic mode is selected, the beat synch module will adjust themusic based on some event such as a body metric measured by the sensor158. If a training mode is selected, the beat synch module will adjustthe music to help drive the user's work out.

FIG. 9 is an operational method 200, in accordance with one embodimentof the present invention. The operational method 200 may for example beperformed on a music player such as any of those described herein. Themethod 200 generally begins at block 202 where a main menu is presentedto a user on a display. See for example FIG. 10A, which shows the mainmenu 250 presented on the display 248. The main menu 250 generallyincludes several options 252 associated with operating the music player.By way of example, the main menu 250 may include options 252 such asplaylists, browse, extras, settings, shuffle, backlight, tempo, etc. Inmost cases, each of the options 252 includes its own sub menu of suboptions, which are associated with the main option.

Following block 202, the method proceeds to block 204 where adetermination is made as to whether the tempo option was selected. Ifnot, the method proceeds back to block 202. If so (as shown in FIG.10B), the method proceeds to block 206 where the tempo sub menu ispresented to the user on the display. By way of example, see FIG. 10Cwhich shows the tempo sub menu 254 presented on the display 248. Thetempo sub menu 254 generally includes one or more tempo options 256,which represent different modes of tempo control. In the illustratedembodiment, the sub menu 254 includes at least a first option 256A and asecond option 256B. Each of these options 256 is configured to initiatea different control operation when selected. For example, the firstoption may initiate manual tempo control, and the second option mayinitiate automatic tempo control. Alternatively or additionally, a thirdoption 256C, may be included that initiates training tempo control.

Following block 206, the method proceeds to block 208 where adetermination is made as to whether the first option is selected. If itis selected (as shown in FIG. 10D), the method proceeds to block 210where manual tempo control is performed. In manual tempo control, theuser can manually enter a desired tempo. This can be accomplishedthrough a user interface element such as slider bar 260 (as shown inFIG. 10E), through alphanumeric entry, by selecting from a list oftempos, or by selecting a multiple of the tempo (⅔×, ¾×, 2×, 3×, etc.).Although exact values are typically selected, in some cases it may bedesirable to offer only a few values in order to simplify the operationof the device. In cases such as these, the user may only be presentedwith a few tempo options such as andante (which is a moderately slowtempo), allegro (which is a brisk and lively tempo), or allegretto(which is a quicker tempo than andante but not as fast as allegro).Accelerando (which is a gradually increasing tempo of music) or rubato(which is a flexible tempo, not strictly on the beat) may also be madeavailable.

If the first option is not selected, the method proceeds to block 212where a determination is made as to whether the second option isselected. If it is selected (as shown in FIG. 10F), the method proceedsto block 214 where the media player performs automatic tempo control. Inautomatic tempo control, the media player automatically controls thetempo based on some event. The event may for example be a user eventthat is measured by a sensor. By way of example, the sensor may be anaccelerometer located within the media player. In cases such as this,the acceleration data can be used to determine the pace of the user whenthe media player is worn on the user. The pace can be converted totempo, and this tempo value can be used to drive the tempo of the musicbeing outputted (e.g., adjust the audio track, select a song with thedesired tempo, etc.). As such, the tempo of the music can be matched tothe pace of the user. For example, the tempo may be increased when theuser's pace increases or it may be decreased when the user's pacedecreases (or vice versa). Alternatively or additionally, the songsbeing outputted can be carefully selected to match the pace of the user.As shown in FIG. 10G, the user may be prompted with a submenu thatallows a user to select tempo features such as “adjust match”, “selectmatch”, or “combo.”

If the first and second options are not selected, the method proceeds toblock 212 where a determination is made as to whether the third optionis selected. If it is selected (as shown in FIG. 10H), the methodproceeds to block 214 where the media player is placed in a trainingmode. In the training mode, the tempo of the music is adjusted to helpdrive the user's workout. The tempo serves as the coach or trainer tothe user. This can be accomplished before the workout or during theworkout.

In one embodiment, the user may be presented with a list of exerciseregimes (as shown in FIG. 10I), each or which has a different exerciseprofile associated with the pace desired by the user during theirexercise sequence. Each exercise profile has a tempo profile associatedtherewith that matches the pace of the exercise profile. When the userselects an exercise profile and begins the workout, the tempo isadjusted according to the tempo profile and therefore the tempo can beused to help drive the pace of the user (either subconsciously or by theuser recognizing that the tempo has increased or deceased). FIGS.11A-11E are graphical illustrations of several exercise regimes, whichshow pace as a function of time. More particularly, FIG. 11A shows ahill work out, FIG. 11B shows a random workout, FIG. 11C shows a cardioworkout, FIG. 11D shows a fat burn workout, FIG. 11E shows speedinterval work out.

In another embodiment, the user may select pace threshold values insteadof an exercise regime. In this embodiment, if the user falls below orabove the pace thresholds the tempo is adjusted to help direct the userto increase or decrease their pace. By way of example, if the heart rateof the user goes above a set limit then the tempo of the music mayreduced so as to encourage the user to slow their pace and thereforetheir heart rate or if the heart rate of the user goes below a set limitthen the tempo of the music may be increased so as to encourage the userto increase their pace and therefore their heart rate.

FIG. 12 is an operational method 300 performed on a portable mediadevice, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. Themethod begins at block 302 where a user selects an exercise activityprofile. Exercise activity profiles may for example those shown in FIGS.11A-11E. Following block 302, the method proceeds to block 304 where thetempo of the music is controlled in accordance with the activityprofile. For example, if the activity profile includes increasing levelsof pace, the tempo of the song being played at the time may be selectedor adjusted to increase with the increasing levels of pace of theactivity profile. In so doing, the tempo can help the user maintain hispace in accordance with the activity profile. Alternatively oradditionally, each activity profile may have a sequence of songsassociated therewith. During the activity, the songs are played in somepredetermined manner to drive the workout.

FIG. 13 is an operational method 350 performed on a portable mediadevice, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. Themethod generally begins at block 352 where a desired body metricthreshold is set. For example, upper and lower control limits of pace orheart rate may be entered. Following block 352, the method proceeds toblock 354 where the body metric is monitored. For example, the user'space may be monitored with an accelerometer and a users heart rate canbe monitored with a heart rate sensor, which are used in well-knownheart rate monitors. Following block 354, the method proceeds to block356 where music is played on the media player. Following block 356, themethod proceeds to block 358 where the tempo of the music is controlledwhen the body metric falls outside of the desired body metric thresholdset by the user. For example, different songs may be played and/or thetempo of the current song being played may be adjusted.

To cite an example using the above technique. The user enters an upperheart rate as for example 160 and a lower heart rate as for example 120.Thereafter when the user is exercising and listening to music, the heartrate of the user is monitored. If the heart rate falls below the lowerlimit, the tempo of the song is increased either by selecting a new songwith the appropriate tempo and/or by adjusting the currently playedsong. If the heart rate rises above the upper limit, the tempo of thesong is decreased either by selecting a new song with the appropriatetempo and/or by adjusting the currently played song.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram of a media management system 400, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The mediamanagement system 400 includes a host computer 402 and a media player404. The host computer 402 is typically a personal computer. The hostcomputer, among other conventional components, includes a managementmodule 406, which is a software module. The management module 406provides for centralized management of media items (and/or playlists)not only on the host computer 402 but also on the media player 404. Moreparticularly, the management module 406 manages those media items storedin a media store 408 associated with the host computer 402. Themanagement module 406 also interacts with a media database 410 to storemedia information associated with the media items stored in the mediastore 408.

The media information pertains to characteristics or attributes of themedia items. For example, in the case of audio or audiovisual media, themedia information can include one or more of: title, album, track,artist, composer and genre. These types of media information arespecific to particular media items. In addition, the media informationcan pertain to quality characteristics of the media items. Examples ofquality characteristics of media items can include one or more of: bitrate, sample rate, equalizer setting, and volume adjustment, start/stopand total time.

Still further, the host computer 402 includes a play module 412. Theplay module 412 is a software module that can be utilized to playcertain media items stored in the media store 408. The play module 412can also display (on a display screen) or otherwise utilize mediainformation from the media database 410. Typically, the mediainformation of interest corresponds to the media items to be played bythe play module 412.

The host computer 402 also includes a communication module 414 thatcouples to a corresponding communication module 416 within the mediaplayer 404. A connection or link 418 removeably couples thecommunication modules 414 and 416. In one embodiment, the connection orlink 418 is a cable that provides a data bus, such as a FIREWIRE™ bus orUSB bus, which is well known in the art. In another embodiment, theconnection or link 418 is a wireless channel or connection through awireless network. Hence, depending on implementation, the communicationmodules 414 and 416 may communicate in a wired or wireless manner.

The media player 404 also includes a media store 420 that stores mediaitems within the media player 404. The media items being stored to themedia store 420 are typically received over the connection or link 418from the host computer 402. More particularly, the management module 406sends all or certain of those media items residing on the media store408 over the connection or link 418 to the media store 420 within themedia player 404. Additionally, the corresponding media information forthe media items that is also delivered to the media player 404 from thehost computer 402 can be stored in a media database 422. In this regard,certain media information from the media database 410 within the hostcomputer 402 can be sent to the media database 422 within the mediaplayer 404 over the connection or link 418. Still further, playlistsidentifying certain of the media items can also be sent by themanagement module 406 over the connection or link 418 to the media store420 or the media database 422 within the media player 404.

Furthermore, the media player 404 includes a play module 424 thatcouples to the media store 420 and the media database 422. The playmodule 424 is a software module that can be utilized to play certainmedia items stored in the media store 420. The play module 424 can alsodisplay (on a display screen) or otherwise utilize media informationfrom the media database 422. Typically, the media information ofinterest corresponds to the media items to be played by the play module424.

Hence, in one embodiment, the media player 404 has limited or nocapability to manage media items on the media player 404. However, themanagement module 406 within the host computer 402 can indirectly managethe media items residing on the media player 404. For example, to “add”a media item to the media player 404, the management module 406 servesto identify the media item to be added to the media player 404 from themedia store 408 and then causes the identified media item to bedelivered to the media player 404. As another example, to “delete” amedia item from the media player 404, the management module 406 servesto identify the media item to be deleted from the media store 408 andthen causes the identified media item to be deleted from the mediaplayer 404. As still another example, if changes (i.e., alterations) tocharacteristics of a media item were made at the host computer 402 usingthe management module 406, then such characteristics can also be carriedover to the corresponding media item on the media player 404. In oneimplementation, the additions, deletions and/or changes occur in abatch-like process during synchronization of the media items on themedia player 404 with the media items on the host computer 402.

In another embodiment, the media player 404 has limited or no capabilityto manage playlists on the media player 404. However, the managementmodule 406 within the host computer 402 through management of theplaylists residing on the host computer can indirectly manage theplaylists residing on the media player 404. In this regard, additions,deletions or changes to playlists can be performed on the host computer402 and then by carried over to the media player 404 when deliveredthereto.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram of a media player 500, in accordance with oneembodiment of the present invention. The media player 500 includes aprocessor 502 that pertains to a microprocessor or controller forcontrolling the overall operation of the media player 500. The mediaplayer 500 stores media data pertaining to media items in a file system504 and a cache 506. The file system 504 is, typically, a storage diskor a plurality of disks. The file system 504 typically provides highcapacity storage capability for the media player 500. However, since theaccess time to the file system 504 is relatively slow, the media player500 can also include a cache 506. The cache 506 is, for example,Random-Access Memory (RAM) provided by semiconductor memory. Therelative access time to the cache 506 is substantially shorter than forthe file system 504. However, the cache 506 does not have the largestorage capacity of the file system 504. Further, the file system 504,when active, consumes more power than does the cache 506. The powerconsumption is often a concern when the media player 500 is a portablemedia player that is powered by a battery (not shown). The media player500 also includes a RAM 520 and a Read-Only Memory (ROM) 522. The ROM522 can store programs, utilities or processes to be executed in anon-volatile manner. The RAM 520 provides volatile data storage, such asfor the cache 506.

The media player 500 also includes a user input device 508 that allows auser of the media player 500 to interact with the media player 500. Forexample, the user input device 508 can take a variety of forms, such asa button, keypad, dial, etc. Still further, the media player 500includes a display 510 (screen display) that can be controlled by theprocessor 502 to display information to the user. A data bus 511 canfacilitate data transfer between at least the file system 504, the cache506, the processor 502, and the CODEC 512.

In one embodiment, the media player 500 serves to store a plurality ofmedia items (e.g., songs) in the file system 504. When a user desires tohave the media player play a particular media item, a list of availablemedia items is displayed on the display 510. Then, using the user inputdevice 508, a user can select one of the available media items. Theprocessor 502, upon receiving a selection of a particular media item,supplies the media data (e.g., audio file) for the particular media itemto a coder/decoder (CODEC) 1012. The CODEC 512 then produces analogoutput signals for a speaker 1014. The speaker 514 can be a speakerinternal to the media player 500 or external to the media player 500.For example, headphones or earphones that connect to the media player500 would be considered an external speaker.

The media player 500 also includes a network/bus interface 516 thatcouples to a data link 518. The data link 518 allows the media player500 to couple to a host computer. The data link 518 can be provided overa wired connection or a wireless connection. In the case of a wirelessconnection, the network/bus interface 516 can include a wirelesstransceiver.

In another embodiment, a media player can be used with a dockingstation. The docking station can provide wireless communicationcapability (e.g., wireless transceiver) for the media player, such thatthe media player can communicate with a host device using the wirelesscommunication capability when docked at the docking station. The dockingstation may or may not be itself portable.

The wireless network, connection or channel can be radio frequencybased, so as to not require line-of-sight arrangement between sendingand receiving devices. Hence, synchronization can be achieved while amedia player remains in a bag, vehicle or other container.

In accordance with another embodiment, the present invention alsorelates to music transfer between portable media devices and theirhosts. As mentioned above, media devices with tempo controllingfunctionality may require several different song versions. For example,media devices may require an original version of a song for normallistening pleasure as well as various “thumbnail” versions of theoriginal for enhanced tempo effecting use.

One method for creating these various versions is to download theoriginal song to the portable media device and then to convert theoriginal song into the various versions on the portable media devicewhen needed (either before or during outputting). This is sometimesreferred to as processing data on the fly. While this may work well, itmay have several drawbacks that make it less appealing to the user. Forexample, because reformatting a song (i.e., adjusting its tempo) is aprocess intensive task (especially on portable media devices that lackthe horsepower of their larger hosts), portable media devices mayoperate slowly and consume more power.

In lieu of the above, the present invention provides a method wheresongs are preformatted on the host before or during the downloadthereto. When a song is identified for download various preformattedsongs derived from the original are sent to the portable media device.The processing is performed on the host, which can handle these tasksmore easily than the portable media player. The tasks may, for example,include adjusting tempo of the original in order to create new versionswith different tempos. Once received by the portable media device, theoriginal and preformatted songs are stored for later use. By storingthese songs, the media device is relieved from having to perform any ofthe labor-intensive tasks associated with song formatting. As a result,the device operates faster and without repeated needs for recharging.

During media device use, a user may request that a song to be outputted.Instead of processing the original song as in the method describedabove, the device simply obtains the appropriate preformatted song fromstorage and outputs it to the user. The preformatted songs may include ahigh tempo, medium tempo and low tempo version.

FIG. 16 is method 500 of transferring data between a host device and aportable media device, in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention. The method 500 is broken up into two steps. A first step 502is performed at the host device, and a second step 504 is performed atthe portable media device. The first step 502 includes blocks 506-510,the second step 504 includes blocks 512 and 514. The method 500generally begins at block 506 where at least one audio file isdesignated for downloading to the portable media device. Thereafter, inblock 508, a tempo tag is generated for each designated audio file. Eachtempo tag indicates the tempo of the audio track associated with theaudio file. Thereafter, in block 510, the audio file including the audiotrack and the tempo tag are sent to the portable media device.

Following block 510, the method proceeds to block 512 where the audiofile including the audio track and tempo tag are received at theportable media device. Thereafter, in block 514, the audio fileincluding the audio track and the tempo tag are stored at the portablemedia device. Once stored, the tempo tag may be used by the portablemedia device to help select appropriate songs when a desired tempo isdesignated. For example, the media device may compare the desired tempoto the tempo tag in order to determine if the audio track should beplayed. It should be noted that the tempo tag associated with an audiotrack can be provided in the audio file or separate from the audio file.

FIG. 17 is method 600 of transferring data between a host device and aportable media device, in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention. The method 600 is broken up into two steps. A first step 602is performed at the host device, and a second step 604 is performed atthe portable media device. The first step 602 includes blocks 606-610,the second step 604 includes blocks 612 and 614. The method 600generally begins at block 606 where at least one song is designated fordownloading to the portable media device. Thereafter, in block 608, amusic collection for each designated song is produced. Each musiccollection contains the original version of the designated song as wellas new versions of the designated song. Each new version has beenreformatted to have a different tempo. In some cases, each song includesa tempo tag. Thereafter, in block 610, the music collection is sent tothe portable media device.

Following block 610, the method proceeds to block 612 where musiccollection is received at the portable media device. Thereafter, inblock 614, the music collection is stored at the portable media device.Once stored, the entire music collection may be used by the portablemedia device when selecting songs in accordance with a desired temporange. In some cases, the music collection includes tags that indicatethat the songs are tempo low, tempo medium or tempo high.

FIG. 18 is perspective view of a hand-held computing device 710, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The computingdevice 710 is capable of processing data and more particularly mediasuch as audio, video, images, etc. By way of example, the computingdevice 710 may generally correspond to a music player, video player,game player, video player, camera, cell phone, personal digitalassistant (PDA), and/or the like. With regards to being hand-held, thecomputing device 710 can be operated solely by the user's hand(s), i.e.,no reference surface such as a desktop is needed. In some cases, thehand-held device is sized for placement into a pocket of the user. Bybeing pocket sized, the user does not have to directly carry the deviceand therefore the device can be taken almost anywhere the user travels(e.g., the user is not limited by carrying a large, bulky and heavydevice).

As shown, the computing device 710 includes a housing 712 that enclosesand supports internally various electrical components (includingintegrated circuit chips and other circuitry) to provide computingoperations for the device. The integrated circuit chips and othercircuitry may include a microprocessor, memory, a battery, and variousinput/output (I/O) support circuitry. In most cases, the microprocessorexecutes instructions and carries out operations associated with thecomputing device. For example, using instructions retrieved for examplefrom memory, the microprocessor may control the reception andmanipulation of input and output data between components of thecomputing device 710. In fact, the microprocessor may work with anoperating system to execute computer code and produce and use datastored in memory. By way of example, the memory may include a harddrive, flash memory, Read-Only Memory (ROM), Random-Access Memory (RAM)and/or the like.

The computing device 710 also includes a display 714. The display 714,which is assembled within the housing 712 and which is visible throughan opening in the housing 712, is used to display a graphical userinterface (GUI) as well as other information to the user (e.g., text,objects, graphics). The display 714 generally takes the form of a flatpanel display such as a liquid crystal display (LCD).

The computing device 710 also includes one or more input devices 718configured to transfer data from the outside world into the computingdevice 710. The input devices 718 may for example be used to performtracking/scrolling, to make selections or to issue commands in thecomputing device 710. By way of example, the input devices 718 maycorrespond to keypads, joysticks, touch screens, touch pads, trackballs, wheels, buttons, switches, and/or the like. In the illustratedembodiment, the computing device 710 includes a touch pad 718A and aplurality of buttons 718B, which are assembled within the housing 712and which are accessible through openings in the housing 712.

The computing device 710 may include one or more switches 720 includingpower switches, hold switches, and the like. Furthermore, the device 710may include one or more connectors 722 including data ports, jacks,power terminals, etc.

In the illustrated embodiment, the computing device 710 is a pocketsized hand-held music player that allows a user to store a largecollection of music, and to listen to this music on the go (e.g., whileworking, traveling, exercising, etc.). In the case of a music player,the memory may contain music playing software, playlists containing aplurality of songs, etc. Furthermore, the GUI may visually providemenus, playlists, music controls and/or the like to the user. Moreover,the touch pad may provide scrolling functions, which allow a user totraverse through menus or playlists on the GUI and the buttons mayprovide button functions that open a menu, play a song, fast forwardthrough a song, seek through a menu and/or the like. In addition, themusic player typically includes an audio jack for outputting audio and adata port for transmitting and receiving audio data (and other data.) toand from a host device. By way of example, the music player maycorrespond to the iPod series MP3 players manufactured by Apple Computerof Cupertino, Calif.

In one embodiment, the music player includes an accelerometer inside thehousing. By way of example, the accelerometer may be model ADXL311manufactured by Analog Devices of Norwood, Mass. The accelerometer mayfor example be attached to the main PCB that includes the majorcircuitry components of the music player including for example theprocessor, memory and other IC chips. The accelerometer as the term usedherein covers both a raw accelerometer and any accelerometer that alsoincludes other components such as an ASIC. Because the music player istypically worn during use as for example using a belt clip or arm band(fixed to the user), the accelerometer measures the motion of the userand produces a signal indicative thereof. See for example FIG. 19, whichshows a user 800 jogging with a music player 710 attached to the arm,FIG. 20, which shows the music player 710 moving up and down when theuser takes steps, and FIG. 21, which shows an exemplary signal 802produced by the accelerometer (the accelerometer converts theacceleration of the user into an electronic signal).

The tempo of the user event (jogging) can be extracted from theaccelerometer signal. For example, referring to FIG. 20, each peak P inthe acceleration signal may represent a consecutive step, and thereforethe number of steps in a given time frame may indicate the beats perminute or tempo of the jogging steps. The extraction can be performed bythe accelerometer as for example via an ASIC or it can be performed bythe main processor or some sub processor of the music player 710.

In some cases, the raw accelerometer data is converted, filtered ortransformed into tempo data. Because the accelerometer measures allmotion not just the steps, the step information typically needs to beseparated from the other motion information to produce an accurate temporeading. As should be appreciated, large scale movements such as stepsmay produce low frequency information and small scale movements such asvibrations may produce high frequency information. The high frequencyinformation can be filtered out thereby leaving only low frequencyinformation indicative of the large scale movements (e.g., steps). Thefiltered information can then be converted into tempo information.

FIGS. 22 and 23 are side elevation views of the hand-held computingdevice 710 shown in FIG. 18, in accordance with different embodiments ofthe present invention. As shown in both figures, the computing device710 includes a housing 712 that defines an internal chamber 730 forplacing the components 732 of the computing device 710. The components732 may for example include a printed circuit board 734 that provides acentral structure for carrying and connecting the operational components736 and supporting them when assembled inside the housing 710. The PCB734 is generally attached to the housing 710 and typically containsvarious integrated circuit chips and other circuitry that providecomputing operations for the computing device 710. The printed circuitboard 734 may for example include a microprocessor, memory, a data port,and various switches. The internal chamber 732 may also contain adisplay, a hard drive, a battery and an audio subassembly, each of whichis operatively coupled to the printed circuit board 734 and its variouscomponents through interconnecting circuitry.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, anaccelerometer 740 is mounted inside the housing 710 within the internalchamber 732. This is typically done to reduce cost and complexity, andin some cases this may also help reduce unwanted high frequency content(e.g., the mass of the computing device may mechanically filter out thehigh frequency content). As shown in FIG. 21, the accelerometer 740 ismounted onto the housing 710 or some structural element of the housing710. As shown in FIG. 22, the accelerometer 740 is mounted securely ontothe PCB 734. As a result of mounting the accelerometer 740 directly orindirectly to the housing 710, the accelerometer 740 moves with themovement of the housing 710. The accelerometer 740 therefore measuresthe acceleration of the computing device 710 as it is moved.

While this invention has been described in terms of several preferredembodiments, there are alterations, permutations, and equivalents, whichfall within the scope of this invention. For example, although the mediaitems of emphasis in several of the above embodiments were audio items(e.g., audio files or songs), the media items are not limited to audioitems. For example, the media item can alternatively pertain to videos(e.g., movies) or images (e.g., photos). Furthermore, the variousaspects, embodiments, implementations or features of the invention canbe used separately or in any combination.

It should also be noted that there are many alternative ways ofimplementing the methods and apparatuses of the present invention. Forexample, the invention is preferably implemented by software, but canalso be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware andsoftware. The invention can also be embodied as computer readable codeon a computer readable medium. The computer readable medium is any datastorage device that can store data, which can thereafter be read by acomputer system. Examples of the computer readable medium includeread-only memory, random-access memory, CD-ROMs, DVDs, magnetic tape,optical data storage devices, and carrier waves. The computer readablemedium can also be distributed over network-coupled computer systems sothat the computer readable code is stored and executed in a distributedfashion.

It is therefore intended that the following appended claims beinterpreted as including all such alterations, permutations, andequivalents as fall within the true spirit and scope of the presentinvention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for playing a one or more songs on aportable media device, the method comprising: detecting a signalindicative of a selection of one user exercise activity profile of aplurality of user exercise activity profiles stored to the portablemedia device, wherein each user exercise activity profile is associatedwith a respective sequence of songs: selecting one of a plurality ofversions of a song of the respective sequence of songs associated withthe selected one user exercise activity profile at a desired tempo,wherein each version of the plurality of versions of the songcorresponds to a different tempo of the song; and playing back theselected one version of the song at the desired tempo during a userperformance of an exercise activity corresponding to the selected oneuser exercise activity profile.
 2. The method of claim 1, whereindetecting the signal includes receiving a signal indicative of a userselection.
 3. The method of claim 1, further comprising: downloadingmultiple versions of the song from a server computer, wherein themultiple versions represent the song in different tempos.
 4. The methodof claim 3, further comprising: dynamically adjusting the tempo of thesong to fit the desired tempo.
 5. The method of claim 1, comprisingassociating a tempo tag with each song of the respective sequence ofsongs.
 6. An exercise system comprising: one or more sensors configuredto detect body metrics; a portable media device comprising: a storagedevice comprising a plurality of user exercise activity profiles,wherein each user exercise activity profile is associated respectivesequence of songs; and a processor configured to: determine a currentpace of exercise of a user of the portable media device based oninformation received from the one or more sensors; detect a userselection of one of the plurality of user exercise activity profiles;and play back the respective sequence of songs associated with theselected one of the plurality of user exercise activity profiles,wherein each song of the respective sequence of songs is played backaccording to a tempo of each of the songs such that the respectivetempos match to the current pace of exercise.
 7. The exercise system ofclaim 6, wherein the one or more sensors are integrated within anarticle of clothing.
 8. The exercise system of claim 6, wherein the oneor more sensors are integrated into a piece of exercise equipment. 9.The exercise system of claim 6, wherein the one or more sensors includeaccelerometers.
 10. The exercise system of claim 6, wherein the one ormore sensors include pressure switches.
 11. The exercise system of claim6, wherein the one or more sensors include proximity sensors.
 12. Theexercise system of claim 6, wherein the one or more sensors includeoptical sensors.
 13. A media player for selecting a song based on auser's current pace, the media player comprising: a file system storinga plurality of user exercise activity profiles, wherein each userexercise activity profile is associated with a respective sequence ofsongs, and wherein each respective sequence of songs comprises aplurality of versions of at least one song of the sequence of songs; asensor capable of measuring a user's current pace of exercise; and aprocessor coupled to the file system and the sensor and configured to:determine a desired pace of exercise for the user according to aselected user exercise activity profile; select one version of theplurality of versions of the song that has a tempo corresponding to thedesired pace of exercise based at least in part on the user's currentpace of exercise; and dynamically adjust the tempo of the selected oneversion of the song to correspond to the desired pace of exercise. 14.The media player of claim 13, further comprising a media databaseoperable to store a plurality of tempo tags.
 15. The media player ofclaim 13, further comprising a CODEC operable to produce an analogoutput signal based on the selected song,
 16. The media player of claim13, wherein the plurality of versions of the song comprises a pluralityof tempo tags.